Detours and Divine Plans: Navigating Life’s Unexpected Paths

We traveled to see our daughter and son-in-law in North Carolina a few years ago.

Around Knoxville, you started seeing signs that said, “detour ahead.” But the “ahead” was several dozen miles.

The farther we traveled, the more often the sign appeared.

Finally, as we were getting close, we found the reason why.

It wasn’t road construction.

In the mountains we had to pass through, a boulder had tumbled down the mountain smashing the road. One car was there when it happened. While the boulder crushed the car,  the people were ok.

But it would take months before it was open again.

So instead, we were routed to a longer route. That route took us through some of the most beautiful vistas imaginable.

What we would have missed if it were not for the detour!

In Acts 16, Paul launched a second missionary tour. He has mapped out his route and sticks a pin in Asia Minor. But “the Spirit forbade him.” Then, at night,  a man of Macedonia stood before him, calling, “come help us.” A door shuts and closes.

He crossed the isthmus into Europe, where the names of great churches such as Philippi find themselves in scripture.

What do we do when God wants us to do when it is not what we want to do?

Much of life, I like that. What do you do when God wants you to do something else? It is an error to make God follow our agenda. He doesn’t care what our plans are. He has greater plans, more long-reaching. It makes little sense to us but perfect sense to him.

Faith takes God’s hand and follows where we would not go on our own. It abandons plans we have for our life for plans he has for our lives. Can we go there with trust and without complaint?

At the same time, I want to avoid the other extreme, which is to baptize our plans with “the Lord wills.” We cannot manipulate God with Biblical language.

We all come to detours that take us off the path we want. Remember that God has something else for you to do when it happens.

Do you trust him enough to take the sideroad?